Electric switch.



M. L. HUBERMANN.

ELECTRIC SWITCH.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 30, 1912.

1,073,047, Patented Sept. 9, 1913.

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nx LOUIS HUBEBMANN, OF I08 ANGELBB, CALIFORNIA ELECTRIC SUIT-0H- amaletters Patent. Patented Sept. 9, 1013.

Application filed Iaroh 80, 1912. Serial 110. 887,475.

To all whom it may concern Be it lmown that I, Max L. HpnnnMANN, acitizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county ofLos Angeles and State of California, have invented anew and usefulElectric Switch, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has reference to improvements in electric switches, andits ob ectis to provide a switch designed particularly for use inconnection with devices for controlling the storage of fluid, as, forinstance, the maintenance of a body of water in a tank.

In accordance with the present invention there is provided an electricswitch of suitable type and an actuating means therefor whereby theswitch it closed may be moved suddenly to the open position, or it openmay be moved to the closed position, and this actuating device is underthe control of a suitable float carried by the body of water in areservoir, while means are provided whereby the rise of the water levelto a certain predetermined height will cause a movement of the actuatorto open the switch, while the fall of the water level to a certainpredetermined minimum will cause a movement of the actuator to close theswitch.

The invention will be best understood from a consideration of thefollowing detailed description taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawings forming a part of this specification, with the understanding,however, that while there is disclosed in the drawings a practicalstructure capable of operating successfully, the invention is by nomeans confined to the structure disclosed, but various modifications inform or size or arrangement of parts may be made which do not mark adeparture from the scope of the claims.

In the drawings :Figure 1 is a side elevation of an electric switch andactuator therefor, and also showing a sufiicient portion of a reservoirand connections therefrom to the actuator to illustrate the operation ofthe invention. 'Fig. 2 is a plan view of the electric switch andactuator together with the base upon which the parts are mounted.

Referring to the drawings, there is shown a base 1 which may be made ofslate or marble, or any suitable insulating material, such as iscustomarily used in connection with electric apparatus, and under somecircum' stances it is feasible to make the base of wood.

Near one end of the base there is erected a post 2, to the free end ofwhich is pivoted one end of a switch arm 3, and in the path of the outerend of the switch arm there is another post 4 rovided with adjacentwings, between w ich the free end of the switch arm may enter, thisbeing a structure commonly employed in the type of switches lmownasack-knifeswitches, the drawmg a slug e arm switch is illustrated, but itwill be understood that other forms of switches may be used, since theinvention is not confined to any particular type of switch. An electricconductor 5 is shown connected to the post 2, and another conductor 6 isshown connected to the post 4, and these conductors may be taken as theterminals of a circuit including or controlling suitable electrictranslating devices, as, for instance, an electrically operated pum suchas is commonly used in connection wit water storing plants.

Erected on the base, 1 at the end remote from the post 2 is another post7 to the free end of which there is pivoted a rock arm 8 preferably at apoint intermediate of the length of 52nd arm. Also erected on the base 1are spaced parallel guides 9 between the ppst 7 and the post 4 and inposition to permit the passage between them of the end of the arm 8directed toward the post 4. This and of the arm 8 has attached thereto achaln 10 or other flexible medium in turn connected to an eye 11 fast onthe free end of the switch arm 3. Fast to each guide 9 1s a pm 12, andfast to the arm 8 near the end remote from that connected to the chain10 is a p1n 13 projecting through the arm to opposite sides thereof.Connected to the pins 12 are the corresponding ends of spr ngs 14, andthe other ends of these springs are connected to the pin 13, there bemga spring 14: on each side of the arm 8. The distance of the ins 12 fromthe base 1 is the same as that o a pivot pin 15 connectmg the arm 8 tothe post 7, so that when the arm 8 1s m parallel relation with the base1, the springs 14 and the pins 12, 13 and 15 wlll all in the same plane,so that the springs in this position are ineffective or neutral and are,also, extended to the greatest degree, while on either side of thisplane the pin 13 is closer to the ins 12 than at the said neutralposition. y placing the springs 14 under initial tension, any movementof the arm 8 to either side of the neutral plane will permit the activeoperation of the springs to turn the arm 8 in the appropriate directionabout its ivot 15, and this movement of the arm un er the action of thesprings will be transmitted throu h the chain 10 to the switch arm 3 tomove the latter into engagement with the blades of 10 the post 4 or outof engagement therewith in accordancewith the direction of movement ofthe arm 8. The structure so far described is located adjacent areservoir 16, which is more or less diagrammatically illustrated in Fig.1

.witho-ut any attempt to show relative proportions of the reservoir tothe electric switch and its actuator. Within the reservoir is a float 17responsive to change in 20 level of water therein, and this reservoirand float may be taken as typical of any storage device, wherein thequantity of material stored is maintained within predetermined limits,either by level or any other suitable characteristic.

Considering the reservoir as designed for the storage of water and thecontrolling characteristic as the level of the water, then the float 17is employed and is connected to a rope or other suitable flexible strand18 carried over guide pulleys 19 to the exterior of the reservoir andthere at the end remote from the float 17 carrying a weight 20, whichlatter, however, is not of suflicient size to move the float 17 fromengagement with the water in the reservoir. The rope 18 is passedthrough an eye 21 fast on the end of the arm 8 remote from thatconnected to the chain 10, and on each side of the eye 21- there issecured to the rope 18 a stop block 22, 23, respectively, each blockbeing made fast to the rope by a suitable number of set screws 24, twobeing usually employed for each block, but this does not preclude theuse of a greater or lesser number of set screws.

In the particular showing of Fig. 1 of the drawings it is assumed thatthe switch 3 is closed, and then the end 21 of the arm 8 is at itshighest point, the base 1 being considered as horizontally disposed.Under these circumstances the electric circuit through the conductors 5and 6 is closed and the devices controlled thereby are active to causean inflow of water into the reservoir 16 whether this inflow be throughthe intermediary of a pump or by opening of a valve in an inlet pipe orotherwise, these features not entering into the present invention and 0being of common form. As the level of the water in the reservoir 16rises, the float 17 also rises and the weight 20 falls, and thiscontinues until ultimately the stop 22 is brought into engagement withthe eye 21 and 35 the action of the weight 20 is to move the arm 8 aboutits pivot 15 against the tendency of the springs 14, until 'the neutralposition of the arm 8 has been reached and passed, when the springs 14immediately become active to carry the arm 8 to its limit of movement inthe same direction in which it has been moving under the impulse of theweight 20, the stop 23 being sufficiently out of the range of movementof the eye 21 to permitsuch movement of the arm 8. The extent of suchmovement of the arm 8 is suflicient to cause the chain 10 to exert apull on the eye 11 and through the latter on the switch arm 3 to movethe said switch arm out of engagement with the blades of the post 4,thus breaking the circuit and thereby rendering the electric translatingdevices inactive, the assumption being that this will step further flowof water into the reservoir 16, this determining the maximum level. If,now, water be used from the reservoir, the level of the water will falland the float 17 will follow thisfalling of the water level, the weight20 rising and ultimately the stop 23 is brought into engagement with theeye 21 and the arm 8 is rocked in the opposite direction to that firstconsidered, until the central or neutral position is passed, when thesprings 14 become active to move the arm 8 suddenly to the firstposition. and this sudden movement of the arm 8 under the action of thesprings 14 in turn acts through the chain 10 upon the switch arm 3 toclose the same onto the blades of the post 4, thus again completing thecircuit and rendering the electric translating devices active to causean inflow of water in the reservoir.

By adjusting the steps 22 and 23, the water level in the reservoir maybe maintained at a close approximation to constancy, so that the onlyvariation in such level is that needed to move the arm 8 from eitherextreme of itstravel to and past the neutral position. By separatingthe'stops 22 and 23 to a greater extent, a correspondingly greatervariation in the water level between the maximum and minimum may beestablished.

It will be observed that by the employment of two springs on oppositesides of the actuator arm 8 all side strains tending to wear the partsunevenly are avoided. The flexible orslack or lost-motion connectionbetween the actuator arm 8 and the switch arm 3'permits an inactivemovement of the actuator from its neutral or intermediate positionsufliciently extensive to permit the actuator arm to acquire high speedof movement before the slack of the flexible con- 25 nection is alltaken up, 'so that the momentumof the actuator arm produces a suddenjerk on the switch arm, especially in the direction to open the switchand the circuit is therefore suddenly ruptured, thus prerange ofmovement of the rock arm nected at one end to the relativel ventingformation of an are which is liable to be established when a circuitsuch as a motor is slowly broken. The flexible or chain connectionadmits of a relative arrangement of the actuator and switch arm, so thatthe slack in the connection will be comparatively great at the neutralposition of the actuator when the switch is in the closed position,while the movement of the actuator in a direction to close the switchafter it has been opened, permits the actuator to pass the dead centerposition and acquire speed to move the switch to the closed positionwith great rapidity and force, thus overcoming any liability ofimperfect contact and resultant heating.

What is claimed is 1. In an electric circuit controller, a suitablebase, an electric switch having a switch arm pivotally mounted on thebase, a rock arm, a mounting on the base for the rock arm in whichmounting the rock arm is pivoted at a point intermediate of its length,a fixed member on the base between the pivot mounting for the rock armand the switch arm, a spring connection from the fixed vmember to therock arm on the side of the pivot of the latter remote from the fixedmember, the pivot mountings for the switch and rock arms and'the springconnections to the fixed member being substantially in line and the endof the rock arm to which the spring connection is connected having arange of movement with said end of the spring connection to each side ofsaid line, and a flexible connection between the end of the rock armadjacent to the fixed member and the corresponding end of the switch armof the electric switch, said flexible connection being of a length topro vide a slack when the rock arm is in a neutral position, which slackis less than the to one side of the neutral position.

2. In an electric circuit breaker, an electric switch including apivoted switch arm, a rock arm having a pivot support at a point betweenits ends, a relatively fixed part located between the pivot support ofthe-rock arm and the switch, springs confixed part and at the other endto that on of the rock arm remote from the switch, the point ofconnection of the springs 'to the relatively fixed part, the pivotsupport for the rock arm and the pivot support for the switch arm beingall in substantially one plane, and the end of the rock arm to which thesprings are connected having a range of movement with said ends of thesprings to each side of said plane, and a chain connection between theswitch arm and that end of the rock arm adjacent to the switch arm, saidchain connection being of a length to provide a slack less than theextent of movement of that end of the rock arm to which the chain isconnected to one side of a neutral position with respect to the springs.

3. In an electric circuit breaker, an electric switch including apivoted switch arm, a rock arm having a pivot support at a point betweenits ends, a relatively fixed part located between the pivot support ofthe rock arm and the switch, springs connected at one end to therelatively fixed part and at the other end to that end of the rock armremote from the switch, the point of connection of the springs to therelatively fixed part, the pivot support for the rock arm and the pivotsupport for the switch arm being all in substantially one plane and theend of the rock arm to which the springs are connected having a range ofmovement with said ends of the springs to each side of said plane, and achain connection between the switch arm and that end of the rock armadjacent to the switch arm, said chain connection being of a length toprovide a slack less than the extent of movement. of that end of therock arm to which the chain is connected to one side of a neutralposition with respect to the springs, means being also provided at thatend of the rock arm remote from the chain for moving said end of therock arm from either extremity of its travel to the neutral positionagainst the action of the springs and for then releasing the rock arm tomovement to the other extremity of its travel under the act-ion of saidsprings.

In testimony, that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have heretoaffixed mysignature in the presence of two witnesses.

MAX LOUIS HUBERMANN.

Witnesses:

E. W. FORGY, C. P. BLAOKMORE.

